Headrest for beds and the like



I. McKAY.

HEADREST FOR BEDS AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB-'9. l9l5- Patented J an. 6, 1920.

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- WZZeN/ZZ' .I. McKAY.

HEADREST Fog sens AND THE LIKE. APPLICATION FILED FEB 9, ISIS.

1,327,108; 1 Patented Jan. 6,1920.

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[nae/11?? JOHN MCKAY, OF BUFFALO, NET/V YORK,

ASSIGNOB, TO HARD MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF BUFFALO, NEFW YORK.

HEAIDREST FUR BEDS AND THE LIKE.

Application filed February 9, 1915.

' To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN McKay, a citizen of the United States, residing at Buf falo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Im provement in Headrests for Beds and the like, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to adjustable head rests for beds, couches and the like, and has for its object to provide arest of this character which can be made to assume a number of different positions or different augular relations to the surface of the bed or couch, and which is attached in such a way to the supporting frame that the distance bc-- tween the lower part of the rest and the foot of the bed is not decreased but preferably in creases as the rest is swung upwardly to suecessively greater inclinations to the surface of the bed.

in the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a bed provided with a head'rest embodying the invention attached thereto.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side elevation thereof on an enlarged scale, showing the I head rest in a partially raised position.

Fig. 4 is a similar view, showing the head rest raised further.

Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation on an enlarged scale on line 5-5, Fig. 2, looking in the direction of the arrow.

Fig. 6 is a sectional detail, on line 6-6, Fig. 3.

7 represents a bed or cot of ordinary construction having legs or end frames 8 supporting the bottom frame 9 of the bed. The bed shown in the drawings is of the three piece type in which the spring bed bottom 10 is permanently attached to the bottom frame 9, which is detachably connected to the end frames by corner fastenings 11 or by any other means ordinarily employed for such a purpose. This invention, however, relates to the head rest and is not restricted to this construction of the bed frame. The bed frame can be of any suitable construction having longitudinal side rails for the support of the head rest, or a supporting frame of any suitable construction can be employed.

13 represents the head rest or support. This rest in the construction shown consists Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 6, 1920.

Serial No. 7,022.

primarily of side bars 14 having downwardly extending curved end portions 15, and a top cross bar 16. The side and top cross bars are preferably formed by a single tube or rod bent into U-shape. A suitable cross piece 17 is secured to the side bars of the rest, near the lower end thereof, and serves to support the lower ends of a num-, ber of flat pieces or slats 18 which have their upper ends supported by and fastened to the top cross bar 16 of the head rest. These pieces or slats 17 and 1S consist of thin flexible metal strips and form a resilient sup port for the head portion of the mattress or pillows. A red 19 connects the extremities of the lower curved end portions 15 of the side bars, the rod being fastened to th side bars by nuts screwed on the threaded eX- tremities thereof, or in any other suitable manner. The head. rest can, however, be of any other suitable construction and have a resilient mattress support of any suitable sort.

20 represents braces which have one of the ends thereof pivoted to the corner fastenings 11 or other suitable part of the head end of the bed frame, and their opposite ends pivotally secured to the side bars of the head rest between the ends thereof. When the rest is swung to a raised position these braces help to limit the movement thereof and serve also to keep the rest in any of its operative positions.

21 represents racks or brackets fastened to the longitudinal side rails or members of the bottom frame and each consisting preferably of a lower toothed or notched bar 22 and a. top bar or guide portion 23 which is attached by depending ends to the toothed bar 22. The toothed or notched bar has inclined slots or notches 24 formed in the upper edge thereof, such slots being of sufficient depth to receive the bottom rod 19 of the head rest and being inclined downwardly away from the head of the bed. Because of this form of the notches, after the rod 19 has been placed in corresponding notches in the two racks it cannot be removed unless both ends thereof are moved simultaneously and unless the rest is moved upwardly and rearwardly, thus insuring in connection with the braces, that when the rod is placed in one pair of the notches, the head rest will stay in the resultant position until the bottom rod is moved from the slot by the operator. The

bottom rod of the head rest cannotbe disengaged from the rack notches by backward or downward pressure on the head rest and therefore is not apt to be accidentally dislodged by the occupant of the bed resting his weight thereon or shifting his position in the bed. The head rest is adjusted to successively higher positions by shifting its bottom rod rearwardly to successive pairs of the rack notches and this can be readily done by pulling upwardly and rearwardly on the side rods of the rest. The rest can be placed in a number of different positions by utilizing a comparatively short rack.

The downwardly-curved end portions allow the rest to assume a nearly horizontal position when the bottom rod rests in the pair of notches nearest the foot of the bed without requiring the head rest to be as long or to be pivoted as near the foot of the bed as it would have to be if the rest were straight throughout its length, and in any adjustment of the rest it is substantially straight or flat from the surface of the bed to the top end of the rest.

By the arrangement described, as the rest is swung upwardly to successively higher positions the lower end thereof moves nearer and nearer to the head of the bed. In this way the length of the portion of the bed in front of the rest will not be diminished as the rest is swung upwardly, but will on the contrary be increased slightly. The upward and longitudinal movement of the bottom The combination wlth a bedstead frame having side rails and a bed bottom supported by said frame in a plane above the horizontal plane of said side rails, of a head rest having side legs which are offset downwardly 1 from the plane of the head rest and straddle and extend below the bed bottom, means for holding the lower end of said legs at diflerent points on said side rails lengthwise thereof, and a brace pivoted to the head rest and to the head end of said frame, whereby when the head rest is raised and lowered and engaged at difierent points on the side rails the points at which said offset legs join the main portions of the head rest will move lengthwise of the bed in substantially the plane of said bed bottom so that the lower end of the main part of the head rest will move toward the head of the bed as the rest is raised and increase .the available area of the bed bottom, and said head rest when lowered is adapted to lie substantially fiat on the bed bottom. 7

Witness my hand this 8th day of February, 1915.

JOHN MGKAY. Vitnesses:

D. IVAN PoMERoY, JOHN E. KRUGER. 

